Penda Diakité is an artist, photographer, and filmmaker whose experiences living between Mali, West Africa and Portland, Oregon have greatly influenced her works. Her striking, vibrant watercolor-collage works incorporate elements of fantasy, folktales, and cultural awareness.

Diakité is also the author of a children’s book, I Lost My Tooth in Africa, which she wrote at the age of 12, and features illustrations by her father, Baba Wague Diakite.